Typically, fiber containing flaked cereals, such as bran flakes have been manufactured by combining a dried portion containing wheat and sufficient amounts of bran to produce a finished product having a fiber content of about 4 grams of fiber per ounce of cereal. These dry components are combined with a liquid portion made up mainly of flavor syrups. The combined portions are mixed and cooked until grits are formed. The grits are then dried, tempered, flaked and toasted to produce a finished product having a flake thickness of about 0.005 to 0.040 inches.
Attempts were made to increase the fiber content of flaked cereals to about 8 grams of fiber per ounce of cereal by increasing the amount of the bran component in the dried portion. However, any increase in bran component caused a significant decrease in flake size and most importantly caused a decrease in flake crispness. It is believed that an increase in fiber content of a flaked cereal dilutes the starch fraction of the flour causing a decrease in the ability of the component to agglomerate. Also, fiber preferentially absorbs moisture which decreases flake crispness. This explains why commercially available high fiber cereals are extruded and normally exhibit limited crispness.
It is known to treat cereal grain with enzymes during processing to aid in the breakdown of starches. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,435,430 by Fulger et al. discloses an all-natural bran product made using enzymatic hydrolysis of the starch containing endosperm of a whole cereal grain. The process involves milling and separating a whole cereal grain; milling the bran fraction to a 5-100 microns particle size; hydrolyzing a slurry of the endosperm fraction with an enzyme, then recombining both fractions to form a cereal dough. This dough can then be formed into ready-to-eat cereal by any conventional method.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,674 by Fulger et al. discloses a ready-to-eat cereal prepared by a process almost identical to that described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,435,430 above. The difference being that the bran fraction in '674 is extruded under high temperature and pressure conditions in a counter-rotating twin screw extruder, instead of being milled as above. As in the above patent any whole grain, such as: corn, wheat, oats, barley, etc., may be employed.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,664,848 by Bedenk et al. discloses the production of high-protein, soy-containing breakfast cereal made from enzyme-hydrolyzed cereal grain of corn, wheat, rice and oats. The soy protein and a proteolytic enzymes are blended with a gelatinized cereal grain under high-pressure and temperature. The resulting product is pelletized and puffed to form a ready-to-eat breakfast cereal.
Other references such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,319 by Conrad discloses the use of enzyme in preparing ready-to-eat cereal product. Conrad discloses the use of hydrolyzing enzymes to degrade starch, while U.S. Pat. No. 4,217,414 by Walon discloses the addition of alpha-amylase to stabilize the starch fraction of a mixture of wheat gluten and wheat starch. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,150 by Fritze et al., U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,388 by Kiely et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 2,555,235 by Huzenlaub et al. disclose the treatment of cereal grain with enzymes or the degredation of the starch in cereal grain with enzymes.
None of the above-references, however, discloses the use of enzymes to produce a high-fiber, crisp, flaked cereal product.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to produce a high-fiber, flaked cereal product.
Another object of the present invention is to produce a flaked cereal product having up to 8 grams of fiber per ounce of cereal product.
A further object of the present invention is to produce a high-fiber, flaked cereal product that maintains its crispness in liquid for an extended period of time.
These and other objects will become more apparent from the following description of the invention.